Capriccio/Concertino

Leos Janacek - Capriccio/Concertino

LP released in 1965

Performers:

Hilde Somer - piano
Caramoor Festival Orchestra: Julius Rudel - conductor, Claude Monteux - flute, Raymond Crisara - trumpet, Adel Sanchez - trumpet, Robert Hauck - trombone, Abraham Pearlstein - trombone, Robert Wright - trombone, John Swallow - tuba, Joseph Schor - violin, Secondo Proto - violin, Julian Barber - viola, George Silfies - clarinet, Reohey Nakagawa - bassoon, Brooks Tillotson - French horn

Capriccio for Piano Left Hand and Chamber Orchestra

Movements: 1. Allegro 2. Adagio 3. Allegretto 4. Andante

instruments: piano only played with left hand, flute (piccolo), 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba

Between June and October 1926, one year after the Concertino [more info below] and at the same time as the Glagolitic Mass, Janacek wrote a work which presented him with a further opportunity for solving the pattern of a concertino in his own way. This was his Capriccio for piano for the left hand and wind ensemble - flute (alternating piccolo), two trumpets, tenor tuba (usually replaced by a bass) and three trombones. Janacek wrote this work at the request of the pianist Otakar Hollmann who, having been wounded in the First World War, could use only his left hand. Hollmann made similar requests to other Czech composers, e.g., Bohuslav Martinu, who wrote for him his Divertimento for the left hand. Janacek had, at first, refused Hollmann's request, but the idea gave him no peace and, on November 11th, 1926, he wrote to Hollmann telling him that the Capriccio was finished. He added: "You know, to write merely for the left hand would have been childishly gratuitous. More reasons were necessary; subjective and objective. When all these were present and clashed, the work came into existence." Thus Janacek composed a Czech counterpart to the four compositions written for the Pianist Prince Paul Wittgenstein (who had suffered in the same way) at almost exactly the same time by Ravel and Prokofiev who wrote concertos for the left hand, and Richard Struass who composed his Parergon to the Sinfonia Domestica (1925) and Panathenean Procession (1926-27).

What were these "objective and subjective" reasons which induced Janacek to change his mind and compose this work? From the objective point of view, the most important reason was certianly that having written the Concertino he found he had not fully explored the many possibilities offered by this genre. As for the subjective reasons, Jarmil Burghauser, in his preface to the published score, assumes that Janacek "was certainly inspired by the unyielding energy of a man who, although maimed in war, did not give up his intended career as a pianist, and this not in the sense of acrobatics but as a serious artist. This defiance (the work was originally to have been called Defiance) and the clash with the drastic realities of war and its aftermath, form the spiritual contents of the work. This is emphasized by the instrumentation mainly for the hard sounding brass instruments, and the general mood of gloom and nostalgia. It is the reverse of the joyful Sinfonietta with which it is linked, however, by its military descent. Thus Janacek's Capriccio may be regarded as a protest against the senselessness and horrors of war while the piano may be said to personify a victim of war who continues to wage an untiring struggle."

The Capriccio, although for a long time one of Janacek's least performed works, is in no way inferior to his masterpieces - except perhaps for some of the sound values, and this may be due to the unusual technique. (from the liner notes)

Concertino for Piano and Chamber Orchestra

Movements: 1. Moderato 2. Piu Mosso 3. Con Moto 4. Allegro

instruments: piano, 2 violins, viola, 2 clarinets, French horn, bassoon

Janacek, in his next work, gave ample proof that his honorary doctorate was not going to have the slightest effect on his composing, especially since it was of a type which might very easily have been academic - a piano concerto.

"The eternally young old man from Brno surprised us on Saturday with a work which was, once again, a revelation. The title: Concertino - for piano, two violins, viola, clarinet, horn and bassoon. As can be seen the scoring itself is pure Janacek, a fact which is even more pointedly stressed in the music (the piano cadenza in the third movement seems reminiscent of the old concertos). Not a symphony with piano, but a suite which might have been entitled, Nature.

"Thus it is clear that the Concertino belongs to the world of The Cunning Little Vixen while the Quartet could be coupled with Katya Kabanova. Janacek's melodies are excitingly new and highly original, sometimes being based on a minor scale with a raised fourth (the main themes of the first, second and to a certain extent the third movements) or on the whole tone scale which has, however, when used by Janacek, quite a different colour than when used by Debussy. The same may be said of Janacek's melodic progressions based on the chords of four or five fourths - equally dear to Debussy. Janacek's rhythms, sometimes slow, sometimes dancing, either primly or with abandon, deserve a complete study of their own. The same may be said for his original and yet perfectly worked-out instrumentation which he knows so well how to gradate by, in the first movement, adding only horns to the piano, in the second, only the clarinet, and only from the end of that movement using the whole ensemble. No wonder that the success of the new work was quite exceptional. Everyone in the audience felt that this was the first spring day of the year."

With these words I tried to express the unforgettable impression made by this work, in an article in Ceskoslovenska republika published after the first Prague performance of this Concertino for piano and chamber ensemble. Janacek wrote it in the spring of 1925 in the heart of his native Hukvaldy country, finishing it on April 29th. (from the liner notes)

Tracklisting:

Side 1

1. Capriccio: Allegro {5:03}

2. Capriccio: Adagio {5:22}

3. Capriccio: Allegretto {3:37}

4. Capriccio: Andante {5:46}

Side 2

1. Concertino: Moderato {5:27}

2. Concertino: Piu Mosso {3:08}

3. Concertino: Con Moto {3:16}

4. Concertino: Allegro {4:06}

(1) or (1) [links coming back soon, (1/22/2012)]